In recent times, there has been a proliferation of mobile computing devices that are available to end users to implement mobile computing functions. Indeed, these mobile computing devices encompass all ranges of mobile hardware types (such as laptops, tablets, smartphones, or smartwatches) and as well as a range of different operating platforms (such as iOS, Android, Windows, etc.).
With the increasing proliferation of these mobile computing devices, there is now also an accelerating increase in the volume of data that is now being loaded onto those mobile devices as a matter of routine usage. The issue is that mobile computing devices are often subject to variety of threats that affect the security of the data loaded onto those devices. In fact, one of the most common of the threats is the simple case of a lost or stolen device that can then be accessed by the person that find or steals the device.
Even when the mobile device includes security mechanisms, those mechanisms may not be robust enough to adequately safeguard the security of data on the device. For example, iOS provides device encryption that relies upon a passcode to protect the contents of an iOS-based mobile phone. The problem is that the security of a device in this arrangement is only as good as the strength of the user's device passcode, which often encompasses only four numeric digits or is not even set at all.
This problem may have severe consequences if the data loaded onto the mobile device is of a sensitive nature. Many organizations expect that their employees are using the mobile devices as part of their work to enhance workforce productivity, which means that sensitive proprietary content for those organizations are likely to exist on users' mobile devices. This may occur, for example, when a user is copying files directly from a corporation's servers onto the mobile device. In addition, the user may be copying data of a professional and/or collaborative nature from a cloud-based content management platform.
Therefore, there are challenges that exist in being able to provide this shared access and collaboration with high availability of data (e.g., an unfettered ability to download and upload files) while also being able to do so in a secure manner. The problem to be solved is thus rooted in technological limitations of the legacy approaches. Improved techniques, in particular improved application of technology, are needed to address the problem of incorporating improved security features to a mobile device platform.